1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to suspended ceilings as found, for example, in cleanrooms, data centers, storerooms or any application wherein ceiling panels are suspended above a floor area of a building.
It is often desirable to have fire sprinkler protection for an area located beneath a suspended ceiling, and to have the fire sprinkler heads located above the ceiling panels of the suspended ceiling. This may be for sanitation and esthetic reasons, or, for example, for cases in which a suspended ceiling is installed in a building having an existing fire sprinkler system.
For the fire sprinkler system to be effective, it is necessary that the water or fire retardant discharged by the fire sprinkler system not be blocked in any way by a ceiling panel. It is necessary that the ceiling panel located beneath the fire sprinkler head be moved from the path of the water or fire retardant, in a rapid manner, when the fire sprinkler system is activated.
The present invention is a drop panel unit that takes the place of a ceiling panel, or a plurality of ceiling panels, of a suspended ceiling, and provides, in a rapid manner, an unobstructed path for the water or fire retardant discharged from the sprinkler head when the fire sprinkler system is activated.
2. Discussion of the Relevant Art
In order to provide a less obstructive and more aesthetical suspended ceiling, having a fire sprinkler system above the suspended ceiling for protecting the area beneath the suspended ceiling, U.S. Pat. No. 6,840,329 discloses a decorative cover plate secured to a housing in which operative parts of the sprinkler system are contained. The decorative plate is located substantially flush with the surface of the suspended ceiling with the housing disposed above the suspended ceiling. A fusible material is used to support the decorative plate and in the event of a fire in the area beneath the suspended ceiling, heat from the fire melts the fusible material thus releasing the decorative plate to expose a sprinkler head of the sprinkler system.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,467,228 discloses a hinged ceiling panel that is pivotally attached to a suspended ceiling grid structure. Unlike the present invention, the hinged ceiling panel must be manually released at the non-hinged edge in order to move the ceiling panel from the horizontal orientation to the vertical orientation. No mechanism is provided for moving the ceiling panel in the event of a fire or activation of a fire sprinkler system and no automatic means is provided to control the rotation of the ceiling panel from the horizontal orientation to the vertical orientation